


Too Much

by MewCake



Category: Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy 15, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Anxiety, Anxiety Attacks, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Sensory Overload
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-10
Updated: 2017-06-10
Packaged: 2018-11-12 13:48:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11163120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MewCake/pseuds/MewCake
Summary: Prompto gets overwhelmed while the gang visits Lestallum.





	Too Much

**Author's Note:**

> s CREAMS CUZ IVE NEVER USED AO3 BEFORE anyway how are you 
> 
> The other day I kinda had some sensory overload and I wrote a really shitty thing to calm down in like, five minutes because I sure do love projecting my problems onto my faves. Had a friend read over it and hella helped me out.
> 
> Thank you to Angelbless cuz she read over it and helped edit this mess. Not to mention lowkey push me to post it, but in a good way. I'm kinda proud of this?? Haven't written in forever and a day. Anyways, enjoy~

Prompto’s head was swirling that day. There wasn’t too much of a reason for it, either. He woke up feeling like shit, end of story. But another day with his friends should aid this problem! They were stopped in a city in order to stock up on supplies. While he wasn’t much of a social person, being around so many people was bound to pick him up!

 

Wrong.

 

It made everything worse.

 

Mostly because they were stopping in Lestallum. He would have been able to enjoy it any other day of the week, but today? The crowd and all the noise was gonna push him over the edge. Before getting out of the car, he took a deep breath. In the nose, out the mouth.  _ ‘Just breath’  _ He told himself.

 

Prompto stayed close to the others. The idea of getting lost in this place alone made him want to cry. The heat, the sounds, the people, it all felt like it was lingering longer than it should. The walls of the narrow walkways felt like they were moving closer and closer together. Finally they got to the market. Whenever the others tried talking to him, he gave quick, one word responses. He could barely focus on anything right now. 

 

For the most part the others didn’t notice. The blonde breathed easy. Although part of him wanted them to notice. Goddamn it why couldn’t he make up his mind. He just went along with the others until they finally started on their way back to the hotel. Staring forward, he was barely aware of his surroundings. His feet moved on auto-pilot, yet he was somehow conscious of it. 

 

Left, right, left, right.

 

They walked by a street band, causing the gunner to flinch.

 

Left right left right left right.

 

Steam rose up from the openings in a manhole cover, floating past his arm. He stiffened, thinking someone had brushed against him. The feeling of something on his arm stayed longer than welcomed.

 

Leftrightleftrightleftrightleftright-

 

“Prompto?”

 

He jumped. “Y-Yeah?” 

 

Noct, the prince and his best friend, turned to look at him, backing up to walk next to him. “Are you okay?”

 

“Yeah! Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” He was trying to play it off. He hoped Noct would drop it, but at the same time push the subject. He wanted Noct to help him, but he didn’t want to be a burden on the others.

 

“You’ve been terribly quiet, Prompto.” Ignis chimed in, now walking on his other side. His glasses shined in the sunlight, almost hiding his eyes. The blonde cleared his throat. 

 

“I’m fine you guys, no worries!” He tried reassuring the others. They didn’t believe him, but didn’t push it.

 

_ ‘Damn it,’  _ the boy thought. They could have pushed it to help him!

 

They finally got back to the hotel, and Prompto stayed quiet the whole time. 

 

_ ‘Breath, Prompto. You’re gonna be fine…’ _

 

Focusing on his phone, he thought a mindless game would help him calm down. Something he could direct his attention to without having to think. His finger moved across the screen, sliding pieces to their correct spot.

 

He could hear bands playing outside.

 

A satisfying ‘pop’ noise rewarded his efforts. More brightly colored pieces fell from the top of the screen, and he continued to swap and slide, matching each color. He was doing pretty good, too.

 

Pipes on the wall screamed as hot water rushed through them.

 

Laying in bed, he rolled onto his stomach. The more he focused, the louder everything seemed to get. He tried to imagine himself melting into the sheets, being surrounded by warmth and comfort. Everything quiet. Everything still.

 

Noctis and Gladio talking next to him.

 

_ Warning: 20% battery remaining. _

 

That’s it.

 

With a gasp, the boy scrambled to sit up. He was breathing heavily, unaware of where he was for a moment. Then he looked over. The two sitting in the room with him stared, and Ignis peeked in from the balcony. He could feel their eyes burning into him. Shit. This was too much.

 

Too much.

 

Too much!

 

Prompto stood up suddenly. “I’m gonna go grab a snack from the vending machine downstairs”. And he ran out of the room.

 

He did go to the vending machine, but he didn’t have any money to get anything. Leaning against the wall, he panting, trying to catch his breath. Breath, breath, breath…

 

“Prompto?”

 

“Gah--!! H-Hey, Noct…” He was sorta hoping one of them would come after him, but at the same time he wanted to be alone.

 

“You ran out all of a sudden...what’s wrong?” The prince moved to the over side of the room, leaning against the wall parallel to Prompto. Awkwardly laughing, Prompto scratched the back of his head.

 

“Heh, I don’t know what you’re talking about! Just uh...wanted a snack!” Noct gave him a blank look.

 

“Do you even have any money with you?”

 

Got him there. Watching his friend turn away, Noct knew what was going on. “If you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine. I want to help any way I can, even if you just want me to go away…”

 

“N-No!” Shit, he sounded too desperate. He looked down. “This is really stupid…”

 

“Nothing is stupid if it’s upsetting you this badly.”  _ Why do you have to be so nice?! Really makes it hard to be paranoid and anxious. _

 

Fiddling with his hands for a minute, eventually holding onto his wrist, Prompto avoided eye contact. He looked anyway but at Noct, almost feeling ashamed to face him. “It’s just...when we were out earlier...there was so much noise! And...and it just kinda felt like...everything was falling apart.”

 

The black-haired boy raised a brow. “Nothing was wrong, though.”   
  
“I know! That’s why it’s stupid…”

 

“It’s not stupid.”

 

Prompto closed his eyes. He didn’t deserve to waste his time like this. He didn’t even realize his hands were shaking. Not until someone else grabbed them gently, keeping them still. Looking up, unable to hold back tears, he saw the prince in front of him. He was worried.

 

“Prompto...I’ve known you for a long time. You think I don’t know when you’re upset?”

 

Holding his breath, the blonde looked at his friend. Eventually sighing.

 

“I just...got overwhelmed… By really stupid things too-”

 

“It’s  _ not _ stupid.” Noct’s voice was firm. He wasn’t accepting any step back. Silence filled the air between the two for a while, until Prompto broke it.

 

“Can I just...hold onto you?” Shoot that sounded weird.

 

“Of course…”

 

Moving forward, Prompto wrapped his arms around his friend, maybe holding on tighter than he meant to. Noct held him in return, rubbing small circles in his friend’s back. 

 

“Feeling any better?” Noct asked.

 

“Mhmm…” Prompto hummed lightly, subconsciously gripping the back of Noct’s shirt. 

 

“Do you want to go back to the room? Ignis and Gladio are worried...:”

 

Prompto shook his head.

 

“Okay. Do you want to talk?”

 

He shook his head again. 

 

“Okay…”

 

There was silence between the two again. Neither of them really knew what to say. How long were they standing there? Felt like forever, but Prompto didn’t really mind. He honestly forgot where they were. It just felt like they were floating together. 

 

“You know...after you ran out, Ignis nearly fell on his face rushing to see what happened…” Noct’s sudden comment brought a snicker out of Prompto. Noticing this, the prince decided to continue with the story. “Gladio started laughing his ass off, and Iggy acted like nothing happened. He asked if you were okay and I told him I’d check.” 

 

Prompto laughed softly, somehow managing a smile. “Guess I really worried them...huh?”   
  
“Of course, but you shouldn’t feel bad. We worry ‘cuz we’re your friends… You worry about us sometimes, right?”

 

“Yeah. Though I never really thought I was worth worrying about.” Noctis moved back, much to Prompto’s surprise. Keeping hands on the other’s shoulders, Noct looked right at the blonde. 

 

“Don’t say that…” He wanted to add more. Tell him that that he was worth all the worry and more. But how does one even put those kind of feelings into words? What Noct thought would be a dramatic moment of honesty turned out to just be three small words. They seemed to have effect, however. Prompto looked away for a moment, pursing his mouth to a line. Looking back to his friend, he gave a slight nod. “Okay…” He breathed again.

 

“I think I’m ready to head back up…”

 

“You sure?”   
  


“I’m sure…”

 

Noctis nodded, stepping back so Prompto could move from the wall. Prompto smiled at his friend, then sheepishly reached for his hand. While feeling better, he still wasn’t completely confident in his ability to stay calm. Noct let the blonde slip a hand into his, squeezing it gently. They started walking back up together.

 

When they got back, Ignis inquired about Prompto’s condition, thinking he was sick or something. Quick to notice his friend’s discomfort, Noct stepped in. He explained what happened, saying that he was just overwhelmed. Nodding in understanding, Ignis went off. Gladio sat in a chair, smiling at the two boys. “Glad to see you have some color back in your face, Prom. You were super pale earlier.”

 

Giving a shy grin in return, the two went to the bedroom. Prompto fell backwards onto the soft and inviting sheets. Noct sat next to him.

 

“You know, Noct? I’m really glad you came after me…”   
  
“Any time. Always happy to help."

 

“No I mean...I didn’t grab a key to the room before I left.”

 

There was a pause, before the two broke into laughter.


End file.
